


The Chronicles of Ask and Embla

by Blairdiggory



Category: The Avengers (Marvel Movies), Thor (Movies)
Genre: Also based on The Selection series but I'm also not putting that in the fandom tag, F/M, Happy Ending, Loki? Straight or cis? In this fic? Nah, Reader works for shield, Then reader is the Midgard ambassador, WE'RE IN FOR THE LONG HAUL ON THIS FIC, horrific modifying of norse mythology to fit my needs, sort of Miraculous Ladybug based but I'm not gonna put that in the fandom, yes I did research for this fic, yes I will include what's actually from the mythology and what I made up
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-02-18
Updated: 2019-10-20
Packaged: 2019-10-30 19:11:23
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 8
Words: 8,614
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17834462
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Blairdiggory/pseuds/Blairdiggory
Summary: After finding out that Asgard and most of Norse mythology is real, you and Loki are given magical jewelry by Queen Frigga in order to stop Ragnarok. You become the vigilantes Embla and Ask, and, Loki hopes, you might become something more. If only you knew who your secret identities were!After Loki is saved from falling off the Bifrost after Thor's coronation, Odin orders him to marry and begins a competition to find him a partner. Since you've fallen for Loki, you decide to enter.Love is on the line for both of you, but it's worth fighting for.





	1. Finding Asgard

You and your partner creep through the cornfield, every one of your senses on high alert. Nick Fury had given the two of you orders to check out the back roads of Nebraska, where SHIELD had received odd readings in the space-time continuum. You aren’t sure how they measure that, but anything that makes Nick Fury this suspicious (a.k.a. more suspicious than usual) is worth checking out. Frankly, there’s probably nothing here, except…

Except the shadow of a man that appears in the middle of the road and then vanishes just as quickly. You tense beside your fellow agent, who doesn’t seem very concerned. 

“Classic Nebraska,” he mumbles. 

“Excuse me?!” you hiss at him. “That is NOT normal.”

“Nebraska just be like that sometimes.”

You hear something crackling. At the edge of the cornfield, there’s a slight ripple in the air. You sneak forward, hand on your gun, and peer into the road. 

At this angle, you can see that the ripple spreads to form a sort of square, large enough for a person to fit through. And through the square, you can see ghostly figures coming in and out of focus and a large, looming structure in the distance. 

“Oh, fuck, it’s Children of the Corn,” you say. 

“Actually, I’ve seen that movie like ten times, and this is not Children of the Corn,” says your partner. “This’s way freakier.” 

You walk forward, and despite a second of hesitation, you plunge your hand into the square. Everything inside it comes into clearer focus for a moment, then shifts to shadows again. You look around the square and find that your hand has disappeared. Yet you can still see it in front of you if you look in the right direction. 

“Call this in to Fury,” you say. “I’m gonna go in.”

“Why?!”

“How else will we know if it’s a threat?” you say. “If I don’t come out in ten minutes, assume I’m dead and get out.”

“Y/n!” your partner hisses, but you step through the square anyway.

It feels like stepping through smoke as you enter. Your boots hit soft ground, and you seem to be at the entrance to a village, beyond which is a gleaming castle. 

You’re disoriented at first by the noise coming from the village (backwoods Nebraska isn’t exactly known for being loud), but quickly assess the situation. 

You assess that a man has taken notice of you and is now advancing with two knives out on either side of him. You put up your gun. 

“Drop ‘em,” you snarl. 

The man, who has dark hair and a lean build, stops, examines you, then puts down his knives with a roll of his eyes. 

“Thor!” he calls. “I found the portal!”

Suddenly, a small army comes from the forest along the outskirts of the town and encircles you. All have weapons, though they aren’t weapons you’ve seen in a very long time. An assortment of bows and arrows, swords, and maces (and a small catapult) are now pointed directly at you. The man smirks.

“Drop ‘em,” he says, mimicking you. 

You put your hands up, indicating surrender, and slowly put your gun on the ground. There’s too many of them to take on at once. You’ll have to make a break for it at some point, though you have no idea WHERE you’d want to run to. 

Another man, larger this time and with fair hair, breaks through the circle of soldiers to stand by the dark-haired man. Four soldiers, three men and a woman, follow him, making it obvious that he is the leader, with the other being maybe second-in-command. They’re wearing some bizarre type of armor, with capes nonetheless, and the one in charge hoists a large hammer, crackling with electricity. He eyes you, then your surroundings.

“You do seem to have found it,” he says. “Well done, brother.”

He pats the second-in-command on the back, then strides up to you. He bends down to take your gun. 

“Not from Asgard…” he murmurs. “Loki, what say you about the make of this weapon?” 

The dark-haired man, Loki, gives it a once-over. 

“Nothing from Asgard, certainly, or of dwarven or elvish make,” he states. “I’d be surprised if it came from one of the Nine Realms, unless it came from…”

He takes you in, and his brow furrows. 

“…Midgard.”

The soldiers raise their eyes at this, and murmurs rip through the army. The leader, Thor, addresses you.

“Which realm do you hail from, my lady?” he asks. 

“Which… realm?” you repeat, confused. You just really, really want your gun back. 

“Thor, if the girl is from Midgard, why would she know about the realms?” Loki says, then faces you. “Are you from Earth?”

“Uh, yes. Aren’t we all?” you respond cautiously. 

“No, we aren’t,” says Loki, who then turns back to Thor. “Portals to Midgard are notoriously difficult to close, this could take MONTHS to repair.”

“What should we do?” asks Thor. 

“We’ll need to stake out the perimeter and post guards inside the portal so no other Midgardians end up in here-“

You hear screaming. You turn around, only to see your fellow agent leap through the portal, yelling a war cry, and smack into you, causing you both to tumble to the ground.

“-like that,” says Loki, pinching the bridge of his nose. 

“Freeze!” your partner shouts, scrambling to his feet and pointing his gun in various directions. Upon seeing the mass of weapons pointed at him, he drops his gun.  
“Just kidding!”

“What part of ‘get out’ do you NOT understand?!” you ask. Everyone is staring at you.

“It’s been ten minutes! I came to avenge your death!” he says. 

“Well, you’re NOT DOING A GOOD JOB OF IT!”

“We have backup coming!” he yells at the crowd, ignoring you. “If you don’t stand down-“

“Norns, this is going to be harder than we anticipated,” grumbles Loki. 

And that’s how SHIELD finds out that Asgard, and most of Norse mythology, is real.


	2. A Library Encounter

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which the reader falls for Loki, and a decision is made

It’s one of your first days as Midgard’s ambassador to Asgard. SHIELD and King Odin decided it would be best to have one for the time being and, perhaps, permanently if all goes well. You’ve been given a room in the castle and a tour of the place, and now it’s time to get down to business. You have meetings set up for the next week, but you want a grasp of Asgardian history and politics before you begin your work. Asgard doesn’t have anything like the Internet, so unfortunately you can’t just Google any of your questions. So, your first stop is the library.

And holy shit, this library is MASSIVE. Books of every shape, size, and color, spanning thousands of topics, are stacked on shelves throughout the three-story room. Winding staircases connect the floors, and beautiful mahogany tables pepper the open spaces, perfect for spreading out your things and studying. After talking to the librarian, you pile five enormous books about the Nine Realms’ history on a table. One slides off before you can react, but someone catches it before it hits the floor. 

“Fancy seeing you here,” says Prince Loki. He glances at the book before handing it to you. “The Nine Realms: A History isn’t very in depth. I recommend…”

He peruses the books you’ve chosen, then puts up a finger, indicating for you to wait. He leaves for a moment, then returns with another tome. 

“A Study of the Realms. Much better,” he says, matter-of-factly. 

“Thank you,” you say, grinning at the prince. You’ve only met him formally once, when you were chosen as the Midgardian ambassador, and he seems nice enough. "This library is amazing. I don’t even know where to begin.” 

He smiles. “I’m glad you think so. What are you here for today?”

“I’m mostly fact-checking,” you say. “You don’t happen to have a quick guide on which Midgardian myths are correct, do you?” 

“I don’t believe so, but I’m sure you can ask,” says Loki, slipping into the seat across from you. You sit also, pursing your lips. 

“I’m not sure that’s a good idea,” you say. “Some of our stories can be…”

“Wildly inaccurate?” Loki suggests.

“I was going to say invasive and embarrassing, but let’s go with that,” you say. 

He grins. 

“Try me,” he says.

You’re so glad he says that because there are quite a few myths, mostly involving him, that you’re eager to inquire about, but you would be too polite to do so under normal circumstances.

“Do you have any kids?” you ask.

“No,” he says. “I’m only 1046 years old.”

When you laugh at that, Loki looks confused. 

“You’re joking, right? You’re not actually that old?” you ask.

“I’m serious,” he says. “Asgardians live for roughly 5000 years.”

You choke on your spit, and he smirks as you start coughing. 

“Didn’t see that coming, did you?” he says. Is he… teasing you?

“No, I did not,” you say. 

“I’m curious though. What children do I have in your myths?” Loki asks. 

“The only ones I remember off the top of my head are the eight-legged horse and the three literal embodiments of hell,” you say.

Now it’s his turn to look stunned. You try to hide your smile and fail miserably. 

“Now I understand why you didn’t want to ask your questions,” says Loki. 

A clock chimes in the library, seeming to come from all around you. The prince begins to rise.

“I’m afraid I must be off,” he says. “It was a pleasure to talk to you.”

“It was for me also,” you say. 

He takes your hand and kisses the back of it. 

“I wish you luck in your studies,” he says, then strides towards the library door, presumably off to meet with some important advisor. 

Well, that was… chivalrous, you think. You hope you don’t develop a crush on the prince. That would be weird, right? And totally out of line. 

Hahaha.

Haha.

Ha. 

Shit. 

You hunker down in your studies, trying not to think about Prince Loki, and you do a decent job of it. You don’t even realize how the hours fly by, until you wonder why your light source has gotten so dim. You look out the window to see night has fallen. You gather up your things, returning several of the books to the librarian, but keeping A Study of the Realms. Your mind is churning with all of the information you’ve learned today, and you’re lost in thought when you leave the library, but a loud crashing noise brings you to your senses. 

A servant has dropped a load of books she was returning to the librarian and bends down to pick them up. When you walk over and begin to help, she looks mortified. 

“Please, my lady, you don’t need to-“ she squeaks. 

“No worries,” you say, shaking your head. You help her gather up the rest of the books, despite her protests, and wave a good night to her as she enters the library.   
Once she’s tucked away between the bookcases and out of sight, the servant transforms herself back to her true form. 

“Good evening, your majesty,” the librarian says, bowing, as the queen delivers her books to him. 

“Good evening to you too, Gale,” Queen Frigga says, smiling softly. 

The test was a success, the queen thinks. Y/n will make a wonderful Embla. And with that, she thanks the librarian and leaves, confidant in her decision and ready to save the Nine Realms.


	3. Origins

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which origins are explained  
> I'm back and ready for spring break!! Hopefully, I can pump out some chapters!  
> Thanks for reading!

It’s mid-morning the next day Queen Frigga summons you for a private matter. You hope you haven’t screwed something up or caused an interdimensional crisis already because given that you’ve been ambassador for less than a week, that would be sad. You keep your fingers crossed as you enter one of the smaller council rooms. 

“Ambassador Y/n, I’m so glad you could come quickly,” says Queen Frigga. 

You bow to her. The curtains are drawn in the room, and the lanterns are lit, giving the room a soft glow. The queen strides past to lock the door behind you. She waves her arms, and you see a mist encompass the door, then disappear. The queen turns and gives you a warm smile. 

“I’ve put a silencing spell on the door,” she explains. “No one will be able to hear us through it.”

Well, that sends off the horror movie sirens in your head.

“I apologize for such secrecy, but I’m afraid I have a very important task to assign you,” Queen Frigga says. 

She stands before you, and from a secret pocket in her dress, she pulls out a small jewelry box. She hands it to you. 

“I am asking you to protect the Nine Realms from the coming of Ragnarok,” she says. “Are you familiar with the term?”

“Ragnarok?” you repeat, accepting the box. “The end of the world?”

“Precisely,” she says. “I have reason to believe there is a group determined to bring it about, and I am too public a figure to move against them.”

She looks you in the eye.

“I’m asking you to do it for me.”

You gape. This was NOT what you were expecting to hear. 

The end of the world. The END of the FREAKING WORLD. If the queen is telling the truth, you have to do something, obviously. You can’t let everyone you know and love die. But…

“Why me?” you ask. 

“Because you have a good heart, Y/n,” says the queen. “And I believe that you and your partner will be able to do this.”

“Partner?”

“Let me explain,” says Queen Frigga. “Open the box.”

You open the jewelry box to find a gorgeous, yet unassuming pair of stud earrings.

“These are the Earrings of Embla,” says the Queen. She waves her hand at the ceiling, and images begin to assemble themselves before your eyes.

“Midgardian myths say that the first humans created by the gods were named Ask and Embla,” Queen Frigga begins. “But those myths are incorrect. Ask and Embla were two powerful pieces of jewelry commissioned by the ancient Allfather, forged in the fires of Nidavellir, to protect the realms.”

You can see fire and smoke in the images, and you can faintly hear the sound of hammers striking metal. Two silhouettes, one a pair of earrings and the other a ring, bloom out of the imagery. A girl and a boy, both cloaked in shadows, take the earrings and the ring respectively. 

“Each has the power to transform a person into a stronger version of themselves, with natural abilities made immensely more powerful.”

The girl speaks, though you can’t make out the words. A bright light flashes around her body, and she appears in different clothing, looker stronger and braver. The boy speaks, and the same transformation whips through him. They move to stand back to back, weapons drawn. Shadowy creatures begin to hiss and nip at them from the outskirts of the image, but the two heroes don’t waver, holding them back. Then, the images swirl out of sight, as if blown away by the wind.

Queen Frigga looks away from the scene and clasps your hands over the box.

“I’m asking you to take the Earrings of Embla and protect us,” she says.

You pause. It’s a lot to process.

“But I won’t be alone?” you say. “There was a boy with a ring…”

“I am giving another the Ring of Ask,” she says. “I’m afraid I can’t tell you who they are. You need to keep your identities secret in case of capture.”

“O-oh.”

“I know I’m asking a lot of you,” says the queen. “But I believe you can save us. Will you take the earrings?”

You consider the earrings for a few moments, taking deep breaths. 

Then, you slowly begin to nod. 

“I will,” you say. 

The queen beams. 

“Then we must discuss how to stop Ragnarok,” she says. She waves her hand above her again, more images swirling to life. Four stags appear, grazing together in a field. 

“There are four harts in the Nine Realms that embody the spirit of each season. Durathror, the Hart of Spring…”

One of the stags, with flowers in its antlers and a pale coat, comes forward on stumbling legs. 

“Duneyrr, the Hart of Summer…”

Another stag, this one proud with a shining coat, strides forward. 

“Dvallin, the Hart of Autumn…”

The third stag, red and playful, jumps forward. 

“And Dainn, the Hart of Winter…”

The last stag, pure white with icicles dripping from its antlers and nose, walks to the front.

“When they are together, they form Eikthyrnir, the Hart of Time.”

The four stags take a few steps back, then rush at each other, and out of the chaos, a giant stag emerges. In its antlers are a sun and moon. 

“Eikthyrnir controls the suns and moons of the Nine Realms, making days and nights shorter or longer as he pleases. He keeps control of the years and keeps the Realms in balance,” says Queen Frigga. “Eikthyrnir normally resides in the forests of Asgard, but I have reason to believe he has been divided into his counterparts.”

The giant stag melts into four separate stags, each of which runs away in a different direction. 

“The Hart of Time cannot control his domain while his body is separated. The Nine Realms may be able to survive without him for the time being, but there are those who wish to use Eikthyrnir’s power for evil.”

“To start Ragnarok?” you guess. 

“Precisely,” says Queen Frigga. “There are two celestial wolves, Skoll and Hati, who hunt the Midgardian sun and moon. Once they devour the two, Ragnarok will start. With the power of Eikthyrnir, one could slow the sun and moon enough for the two wolves to catch up and start the end of our days.”

“So in order to stop this, we need to find the four harts and bring them back together,” you say. 

“That is the plan,” says the queen. “Tonight, I’d like you and your partner to meet at the edge of the forest, where the castle meets it. I need you to examine the hart that lives there, and either confirm or deny my suspicions. If Eikthyrnir really has been separated, I have the locations of the harts’ birthplaces, to which I believe they will return.”

She walks to you, putting a hand on your arm. 

“I know you can do this. Are you ready?” she asks. 

“I am,” you say.

“Then put on the earrings,” says Queen Frigga. “They will only change you when you say, ‘Transform me’.”

When you put on the Earrings of Embla, you don’t feel any different. Right now, they seem just like a normal pair of earrings. Your transformation has yet to come.

But you are ready to face whatever lies ahead.


	4. Midnight Fight

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I like writing fight scenes, but they always seem so short lol  
> Thanks for reading!

Loki examines the ring his mother gave him. It’s a plain golden band, nothing special, nothing out of the ordinary. But in reality, it’s so much more. 

Loki had grown up hearing stories of the Nine Realms, most of which he’d written off as tall tales, nothing more than self-proclaimed heroes exaggerating their deeds. He hadn’t expected any of them to be as true as they were told, but looking at the Ring of Ask, he wonders what truths are hidden behind them all. 

“I’m giving this to you to protect the Realms,” his mother had said. “You may not be king, but this is precisely why I’ve chosen you. You will have the ability to step out of the public’s eye and work in secrecy. With your cunning mind, you and your partner can save us.”

“Partner?” Loki had asked. 

“I’ve given the Earrings of Embla to another. I ask that you not reveal your identities to each other, in case of capture.” 

Loki frowns now. Why does he need a partner? Does his mother not trust in his abilities?

Regardless, she had told him her plan, and soon, he will meet his partner. As the sun sets, he runs a hand through his hair and stands up.

“Transform me,” he announces. The world whips away for a moment, only to leave him a changed man. With that, he opens the door to his balcony and whisks into the night.

 

You wait under the cloak of darkness, just inside the forest boundary. When you’d transformed, you’d felt like a magical girl, but you don’t look much like one. The clothing hugging your skin, while thin enough for you to move, seems to be made of some sort of armor. You have a silver dagger at your side, curtesy of the transformation, but everything else about you blends into your surroundings. Your hair is much longer but tied back. You’re even wearing a mask, which is… kind of hilarious but probably very smart. Nobody can know who you are. 

Your new superhuman hearing registers something behind you. You turn quickly, barely making a sound. 

A man in clothing similar to yours, with a lean but strong build, faces you. His hair is dark, hiding his face in addition to his mask. 

“Embla?” he asks quietly.

“Ask,” you reply, nodding at him. 

“I’m glad we’ve found each other,” he says. “Now then…”

He takes a page of a book out of one of his pockets, which you see tells the story of the Four Harts, and speaks an incantation into it. The page folds itself into the shape of a miniature stag, which Ask throws into the air. The paper stag comes to life, shaking its head and pawing at the ground, and then takes off in a brisk trot deeper into the forest. 

“What is that?” you ask. 

“A tracking spell. We’ll follow it to the stag,” says Ask. 

You nod, and the two of you take off. The paper stag is fast, but your powers allow you and Ask to easily keep up with it. The two of you are like shadows as you run, dark blurs making practically no sound as you step on the forest floor. The moon is bright, and tracking is easy. You only stop when you reach the edge of a clearing in which a real stag is grazing. 

You imagined stags to be majestic and daunting, but this stag is anything but. It’s young, and its legs wobble, and the flowers in its antlers give it a childish aura. Ask sweeps the paper stag away before it can enter the clearing, not wanting to spook the gentle creature ahead of you. He looks worried.

“I’ll take a wild guess and assume that’s the Hart of Spring,” you say. 

“I’d guess the same,” says Ask. “It appears the queen was right. Keep watch while I put protections around it-“

But before he has a chance to step forward, a glittering net appears out of nowhere, and traps the stag where it stands. Durathror panics, but as it attempts to free itself, it entangles itself more. You and Ask steal a glance at each other, with a tacit understanding. You can’t move into the clearing without putting yourselves at risk for capture too. You’ll need to wait for the assailant to come forward. 

Four men step into the other side of the clearing. Durathror is struggling and wheezing, and one man, the apparent leader, chuckles. He leans over the stag and leers. 

“Pack ‘im up, boys,” he says. “We’ve got someone to report to, and I’m not keen on losing any more time.”

One of the men bends down to pick up the stag, placing himself so that he blocks the other’s view of you and Ask. Ask nods ever so slightly, and you both spring into action. 

Before the men know what hit them, the one on the ground is felled by your knife, and Ask is already bearing down on another man, who is unable to react in time. Ask slams the butt of his sword into the crony’s head, and the man crumbles.

The other two raise their swords quickly. It’s one on one , but the stag is between you and the cronies. You need to get it out of there.

“Go for the stag!” you cry, launching yourself forward to protect Ask and Durathror. 

The leader parries your next attack. The other man swipes his sword at you, but you easily drop under it, and roundhouse kick his legs out from under him. The leader thrusts his sword at you, intending to make you trip over his partner, but you backflip, kicking his sword out of his hands. You grab it as it arcs in midair and plunge it into his partner, who screams, then stills. 

The leader pulls a dagger from his belt and throws it at Ask, hoping to catch at least one of you off guard. You turn your dagger into a shield (you’ve found you can transform your dagger into any weapon at will) and throw it, intercepting the dagger. 

Now, you’re both weaponless. You lunge at the leader, feigning left but going right. The leader aims a punch in the wrong direction, and you use his momentum against him by grabbing his arm and flipping him to the ground. You kick him in the head to keep him down. 

“Who do you work for?” you hiss, hoping to at least get some information out of the guy. 

But the man does nothing but sputter, hands cradled over his head, expecting the worst. Ah well.

You retrieve your shield, turn it into a dagger, and, after almost lovingly parting his hands from his face, slit his throat. 

You turn around to make sure Ask is done with the stag. He’s standing with the stag at his feet, staring at you with wide eyes. Now, you’re worried.

“Is the stag ok?” you ask quickly. “Are there others?”

Ask starts, then shakes his head. 

“Durathror, is, uh, he’s fine,” Ask says. “And there doesn’t appear to be anyone else around.”

You see that the stag is nearly all untangled from the net, cowering from Ask. You kneel next to it and gently pull the shreds of net away from its eyes and antlers. 

“I just need to put a protection spell on him,” Ask coughs. He lays his hands on the quivering deer, while you stroke its head. It seems to relax as it feels Ask’s magic flow into its body. The blossoms on its antlers open wider and seem more vibrant. As soon as Ask is done, you free the stag of the remaining net pieces, and it scampers away into the forest.

“It’ll be safe?” you ask, ready to run after it if need be.

“Yes, it will be safe,” says Ask. You turn to see he’s still looking at you strangely. Maybe he’s just not used to blood?  
“Should we do anything about the bodies?” you ask, walking up to the crony with the blade in his chest. You trace the intricate carvings on the handle. A sun and crescent moon forged together catch your eye among the metalwork. 

“I’ve seen that symbol before,” Ask says, stooping to get a better look. “Though I can’t remember where.”

You take a look at the sky, only to see how high the moon is. 

“We should leave,” you say. “Best to get a good night’s sleep before we go questing for more stags.”

“Yes, of course.”

Ask stands up and offers you a hand. You shake it. 

“I’m glad we’re working together,” he says.

“Me, too,” you say smiling. 

And with that, the two of you run back to your lodgings, prepared to meet again.


	5. Daylight Fight

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Chapters will unfortunately not be written/posted on a regular schedule because SCHOOL is a PAIN, but thanks for your kind words so far!

Loki is in love.

He’s in love, he’s in love, he’s in love.

Is it possible to fall for someone after meeting them for the first time? Does love at first sight really exist? Loki doesn’t know. All he knows is that Embla is the love of his life. She’s so strong, so smart, so caring. He’s in LOVE- 

“You seem distracted, brother,” says Thor. The two of them, along with the Warriors Three and Lady Sif, are eating breakfast. It’s a cold morning, and Loki can see a light mist on the ground through the window in which he’s been absentmindedly staring for the past couple of minutes. 

“Do I?” Loki drawls. 

“What’s on your mind?” 

“Nothing important.”

The thing on his mind is INCREDIBLY important, but he knows Thor and the others will only make fun of him if he tells them the truth. They’ll ask about the recipient of such affection, and that’s not a realm he can delve too deeply in without giving away his mother’s secret task. 

Thor pats him on the back and stands. 

“Nothing a round of sparring can’t fix,” he says, grinning. 

Loki stands, as do the others at the table, and the group walks off toward the training grounds. He’ll see Embla again soon. For now, he needs to be prepared to fight both his mother’s battle and anything else that arises in the kingdom. 

 

What a RUSH you’d felt as Embla. Fighting is ten times easier as her, given the heightened abilities, but right now, you need to practice fighting as yourself. You dress in black fighting gear and make your way to the training grounds. 

Most of the training grounds contains a large arena, where soldiers are honing their skills on an array of weapons and practicing tactical maneuvers. You make your way towards the weaponry, carefully choose a dagger, and practice your technique. Once you feel confident in your ability with the new knife, you walk to the area where mock fights are being held. 

You’re paired with another knife-wielder, and when the fight starts, you drown out the sound of the arena, completely focused on the fight. Dodge. Swipe. Dodge. Your partner nicks you on the cheek, but you grab his arm and twist until he drops his knife, which you kick behind you. Your partner isn’t prepared for a fistfight and feebly attempts to jab at you, but you clock him in the head with the butt of your dagger. He falls to the ground and surrenders. 

“Ambassador!” you hear, as you help the man up. You turn to see Prince Thor and his entourage walking toward you. “Wonderful to see you here!”

“Likewise,” you say. 

“Daggers are my brother’s weapon of choice,” says Prince Thor, and you note the two blades Loki is holding. “I’m not nearly as familiar with them as he is, but your skills are remarkable.”

“Exceptional,” Prince Loki agrees. 

“Ah, thank you,” you say. Thank God you’re still red from the fight, or else they’d be able to tell you’re blushing. 

“In fact… Loki, go spar with her,” Prince Thor says, nodding his head in your direction. 

Oh boy. 

“I’m not so sure about that,” you say. 

“Afraid of losing, Ambassador?” Prince Thor grins. 

“Just choosing my battles wisely, my prince,” you say. 

“Come now, it’s just a friendly spar,” says Prince Thor. 

“Thor,” Prince Loki protests, “she’s clearly uncom-“ 

“Keep him in the ring for a few minutes, and you’ll have bragging rights.”

There’s no easy way out of this that you can see, so you agree. While you grab another knife, Prince Loki vaults into the ring. Then you take your positions across from each other and begin to circle one another. 

It appears that both of you would rather take defense than offense, and for a few seconds, nobody makes a move. Finally, you run forward, aiming for his stomach. Prince Loki counters, and the fight begins. 

You’re not evenly matched by any means, which is clear in the first ten seconds, but something is off. Prince Loki could probably have beaten you by now, but he hasn’t. You figure he’s just going easy on you, but at the same time, he doesn’t seem to be doing it on purpose. He seems… distracted.

Loki is distracted. 

He’s still dreaming of Embla, and surprisingly enough, he can fight and dream at the same time. You’re good at sparring, but not as good as him, so it isn’t really a problem. 

How does he go about telling Embla he loves her? Is it too soon? Should he wait? What should he say? What should he-

You manage to get a good hit on his shoulder, which knocks some sense into him. In a few quick strokes, he’s ended the match, with you pinned beneath his knee. You put your hands up in mock surrender, and he helps you to your feet. 

“Good match,” he says.

“Yeah, good match,” you say, panting. Loki’s barely broken a sweat. 

You and Loki step out of the ring, and Thor congratulates you on staying in the ring for over a minute with Loki. You decide to head back your room to change, leaving Thor, Loki, and the rest to practice. Loki feels like he’s missing something right in front of him, but waves it off, content to continue practicing to impress Embla later.


	6. A Mission Gone Wrong

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> School has been really busy, sorry for such along time between updates!!

In the afternoon, you receive a note from Queen Frigga, giving you your next task: tonight, you and Ask will go to a small town where Dvalinn is rumored to be. You pretend to go to sleep early, then transform in your room.

While the mask is the same, the rest of your outfit is different this time. You’re wearing something a bit bulkier with buffer between you and your armor. You wonder if your transformations can predict what sort of trouble you’ll get into, but you open your window and climb down the side of the castle. Your new abilities give you amazing speed and stamina, and you take off towards the town, running so fast you’re practically flying. 

Within an hour, you find yourself in a field on the outskirts of a small farming community, with a pasture to your left and a cemetery beyond it. Ask shows up not a minute after you do. 

“Embla,” he says softly. Something feels right to him about saying your name. It feels intimate. 

“Ask,” you nod back. “Should we do some reconnaissance and meet back here?” 

“I’ve skirted the fields already,” Ask says. “Nothing out of the ordinary. There are flocks of sheep scattered around here, and I suspect Dvalinnn may be hiding among them.”

“That’s as good a guess as any,” you say. “Normally, I’d say we should split up to cover more ground, but…”

“We should stay together. Something dangerous is after us and the stags. We need to be keeping each other safe.”

“Speaking of which… does it feel too quiet to you?”

Ask frowns. 

“You think we’re walking into a trap?” he asks.

“I’m not sure,” you say. “Be on your guard.”

Ask nods, and the two of you creep forward, silent as the moon. There are flocks of sheep to either side of you, with the cemetery directly ahead. You glance at Ask, who indicates you should go toward the flock on the left. You step to the left, and he steps to the right, the two of you planning to circle around the sheep in opposite directions and meet on the other side. A dog guarding the sheep growls in Ask’s direction. Ask takes a step farther out to the right so he can avoid the dog.   
The ground rumbles, and something moans. The dog begins to bark wildly, alerting the sheep. You shoot a “YOU SERIOUSLY MANAGED TO PISS OFF THE DOG?!” look at Ask. He shoots a “I DON’T KNOW HOW I EVEN DID IT!!” look back, but the moaning gets louder, and he turns to face the sound. 

In the cemetery, three of the tombs are crumbling, and as more of the stone falls away, the moaning gets louder. 

“Draugar,” Ask whispers, as you say, at the same time, “Zombies?!”

“What?” Ask says.

“I mean, uh, what are draugar?” you say.

“They’re living corpses,” says Ask. “I thought they were just stories meant to scare children. I didn’t realize they were real-“ 

The guard dog bites at the heels of the sheep, all of which are vaguely awake, forcing them to run in the opposite direction of the cemetery. 

“The sheep - what if they’re taking Dvalinn with them?” you say. “We can’t fight and find a magic stag at the same time.”

“Split up?”

“Use your tracking spell!”

“It won’t work without that book page!”

The sheep are getting farther away.

“Tell me what I need to know to fight draugar, then go find the stag and put protections on it!” you snap.

“Draugar are immune to weapons-“

Ah shit. 

“-so you need to force them back into their graves!” 

“Got it!”

“And they can do magic! Be careful!”

“I’m always careful!”

Showing the slightest bit of humor makes Ask feel better about your positions, so he runs off to find Dvalinn. You leap forward, ready to face the three angry draugar that have now escaped their tombs. 

They do look vaguely human, but mostly they just look like rotting corpses. Moldy, black muscle hangs off the three draugar, the skin having been eaten away years and years ago. You take a moment to gauge your opponents. 

One is bigger than the others, and it continues to grow using magic. Its misshapen head looks small on its now comically big body, but now it’s too big to shove back into its tomb.

One of them has hands that are charred to the bone. It jerks its hand up and a swirl of white hot light encircles it. You jump out of the way as a bolt of lightning strikes where you were just standing. 

You don’t know what type of magic the third one can wield, but you’re drawn into the fight before you can consider it. The large draugr runs forward and swings at you. You duck under its legs, aiming for the third draugr, but missing. The lightning draugr shoots at you twice, but you’re able to shield yourself behind headstones. You take out your dagger and transform it into a whip. They may be immune to weapons, but you hope you can trip at least one of them back into their graves. 

The large draugr tries to catch you again, and you jump back towards the tombs. The lightning draugr readies again, and you get an idea. You tightly lasso the biggest draugr, then throw the end of your weapon at the lightning draugr, whose bolt hits it in midair. The whip, which is made of the same metallic element as your dagger, conducts the electricity, and shocks the draugr, making it fall to its knees. Its flesh melts off, leaving charred bones and a body small enough to shove into a grave.

The draugr is still moving and sparking, but you run forward, grab the end of your whip (getting a shock in the process), and flip the draugr back into its tomb, slamming the door behind it. 

Now, you’re down to two. 

The lightning draugr is beyond pissed and is now shooting lightning everywhere. The cemetery is catching fire. 

And, most unfortunately for you, villagers have begun to come out of their homes to see what all the commotion is. When they start screaming, the draugar shift their sights on the civilians instead of you. 

The lightning draugr runs towards the heart of the village, and when you attempt to follow, the third draugr blocks you and sneers. You turn your whip into a sword, and though you know the blade can’t cut the creature, you hope you can carry enough weight with the sword to push it back. 

But every time you swing, the draugr is able to counter. Soon enough, the two of you are caught in a sort of macabre dance, slashing, jabbing, and shielding. You can’t gain any ground, and the village is starting to go up in flames. It’s almost like the draugr knows exactly what you’re going to do…

But it doesn’t see the shape that slams into it from behind. Ask hits the draugr so hard it crashes through several tombstones, breaking its bones and splitting open its face. Ask rolls to the ground and uses his momentum to spring forward, grab the draugr, and launch it into its open tomb. 

“Clairvoyance is a fun bit of magic, isn’t it?” he says, closing the tomb door tight. That explains why the draugr knew your every move.

“Nice shot,” you say. Ask grins at the praise. “But we have one more draugr to stop.”

“I assume that’s why everything is on fire?”

“That is most definitely why everything is on fire,” you say. “Did you get the stag?”

“He’s safe now,” says Ask. “I put protections on him and disguised him as one of the sheep.”

“Then let’s do this.”

You and Ask run towards the town square, where the last draugr is blasting shops to smithereens with lightning. The townspeople have grabbed their pitchforks, and they’re doing their best to keep the draugr confined to the town square, but it isn’t enough. Fire rages across the rooftops and is spreading fast. You’ve got to do something quick. You see the local tavern and get an idea. 

“Distract it!” you yell to Ask. 

Though you’ve only met twice, Ask trusts you enough to follow your command. He creates several images of himself, and they spread out across the square. The draugr sets its sights on the many Asks and raises its hands, ready to fire, while you sneak into the tavern. 

Moving swiftly beneath the caved in roof, you grab a small barrel of some type of alcohol and run back out. The draugr is picking off the clones of Ask one by one, but the lightning requires a few seconds of recharging after every blast. You hope your plan works. 

As you use your super strength to hurl the barrel towards the draugr, you scream, “Come get some, you prick!”

The draugr whirls in your direction. It sees the barrel, takes aim, and blasts it as it nearly collides with its head. 

Just as you thought, the alcohol is flammable, and it explodes in a fiery burst. The draugr screeches inhumanly as its body is ripped apart. When the flames clear, the broken pieces of the draugr still twitch, but it can’t use magic. It’s time to take this thing back to its crypt. 

You and Ask move forward to sweep up the remains, when you hear someone shout, “Hey! You two!”

The two of you turn to find an irate civilian approaching you. 

“Who are you?” he asks. 

“We’re… Ask and Embla,” Ask says, shooting a look at you. You nod in encouragement. “And there’s no need to thank us for saving y-“

“SAVING us?!” the man shouts. He looks like he could explode at any minute, just like the alcohol. “Only outsiders would be daft enough to enter the cemetery! This is YOUR fault!”

The fire is still spreading, now glowing even farther away than before. The shops in the square are absolutely destroyed, and an angry mob is inching into the square, itching to run you through with pitchforks. Ask grabs your arm.

“We should be going-“

“What?!” you say. “We can’t just leave them here-“

“I promise I’ll fix this later, but now we have to GO-“

You want to protest, but the mob begins to run at you, screaming, hurling rocks, and aiming pitchforks. You and Ask turn and run into the night. 

When you get close enough to the castle, you stop to part ways. 

“Well, that went… worse than I hoped,” you sigh.

“We secured the stag,” says Ask.

“But did we have to burn an entire village to the ground to do it?” 

Ask touches your shoulder.

“I promise, I’ll fix it. But you have to trust me,” he says. 

You look skeptically at him, but smile. 

“I’ll hold you to that promise.”

And with that, you say goodnight and part ways, with you thinking of a good night’s sleep, and Ask thinking of you.


	7. A Bad Situation

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> HELLOOOOOO I'M BACK FROM THE DEAD  
> Sorry about the hiatus! I was studying abroad, then filling out applications for grad school, then getting back into the swing of things at my university. I'm doing NaNoWriMo next month, and my goal is to use it to finish this fic. I might start uploading chapters more frequently, but with lower word counts? We'll see.   
> Thanks for reading!

Ugh, you’re STILL thinking about the mock fight you had with Loki the other day. He was just so close and so attractive, and his motions were so fluid, and he-

“I’m sure you’ve wondered why I’ve called this emergency council,” the Allfather says, snapping you out of your thoughts. Probably for the best, frankly, as Loki is right across the room from you, along with his brother and mother. You were probably staring at him while daydreaming. Stupid.

You’re seated at a long table, along with many advisors, councilmembers, and ambassadors from other realms. An elderly advisor with a fat face and purple robes stands beside the Allfather, looking serious. Only the two of them seem to know what’s going on. 

“As my son Thor’s coronation draws near, a new threat to Asgard has presented itself,” continues the Allfather. 

The crowd murmurs, and wary looks are cast around the room. King Odin nods to the advisor beside him, whom you recognize as Lord Asmund, the king’s chief advisor. He begins to speak.

“Last night, two masked persons made their way into Ravenhill,” he says. 

That name sounds familiar…

“Upon entry, they immediately awakened the draugar that guarded the town-“

Oh.

“-used them to set fire to the town-“

Oh no.

“-and absconded from the scene without a trace, leaving the townspeople to flounder in the wake of the raging inferno,” says Asmund. 

Ohhhhhh fuck. 

“As Ravenhill is Asgard’s largest supplier of metals for weaponry,” Asmund says. “We must see the destruction of the town for what it is: an attempt to weaken Asgard before the coronation.” 

You hear gasps around the room. 

This is bad. This is VERY bad. 

“As of now, we are implementing a bounty of 100,000 gold pieces on each of them,” the king says. “These outlaws must be brought to justice before my son becomes king. We CANNOT have this threat running rampant.”

You vaguely glance at the queen, who just barely shakes her head, indicating that you should stay quiet on the matter. Prince Loki seems like he wants to say something too, but she touches his forearm lightly, holding him back. 

“We have brought you here to ensure that you not only take the necessary measures in your respective districts to catch these outlaws and also to protect yourselves,” says the Allfather. “We do not know the extent of these people’s plans or what their goals are. They potentially endanger all of you, and you must stay vigilant. I trust you all to uphold Asgard’s honor and safety. You are dismissed.”

You see a variety of reactions around the room. Some people are ordering their personal protectors to double the guards around them, some stand and move to the king to discuss espionage tactics, and some look like they’re ready to take on these outlaws on the spot. 

You keep a calm face and watch the chaos unfold around you. You need a strategy, and soon. You decide it’s best to leave for now, and as you turn to leave the room, you catch the glint of Lord Asmund’s robes as he talks to the Allfather. On the back of his purple robes, golden fabric is sewn in the shape of his family’s crest, the sun and the moon intertwining. 

The exact same symbol you saw on the sword of the men attempting to capture Durathror.  
And with the knowledge that the king’s closest advisor is trying to destroy the nine realms, you leave the room.   
\----------------------------  
For once, Loki is completely and utterly dumbfounded. He and Embla? Outlaws? They’re trying to SAVE the realms, for Norns’ sake. He itched to interject at the meeting, to claim their innocence or to call Asmund’s proposition preposterous, something, ANYTHING.

But frankly, his mother was right to hold him back. People already thought of him as the darker child between him and Thor, and he didn’t need more doubt cast on his reputation, nor did he need to draw attention his familiarity with Ask and Embla. It was the smarter move. 

But as Lord Asmund turns now to speak to his father, Loki sees the crest of Asmund’s family on the back of his robes, he understands just how bad their situation is. 

He needs to see Embla, NOW.


	8. Aftermath

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I think things will start to pick up soon, maybe in 2 chapters. Thanks for reading!

You get back to your room to find a note on your desk. Upon opening it, you see it reads, “Don’t meet him tonight. Await further instructions.”

As soon as you’ve read it, the note magically disintegrates in thin air.

Frankly, you agree with it. Meeting up with Ask now would be incredibly dangerous. Should you be caught speaking about the meeting, they’ll know one of you is on the council, and that would risk your secret identities AND your mission. You’re ready to gather more information until the times comes to find the next stag.

\--------------

Loki doesn’t want to risk it all, but for once in his life, he’s impatient. The one he loves is in danger, and he can do nothing about it.

“I’m not sure of the whereabouts of the next stag,” she whispers to him when they’re alone. “I want you to start researching it, but be discreet.”

So here he is, in the library between councils, looking for information about the winter stag, Dainn. And to keep his cover, he’s here with you, under the guise of teaching you more about Norse history.

“So, the draugar that Lord Asmund was talking about are real,” you say, scouring some tomes. “What other creatures exist here that we don’t have on Midgard?”

“Some iconic creatures include large wolves-“ You’re guessing they’re much bigger than the wolves you’ve heard of, but nod.

“-lindworms-”

You nod again, having heard of that type of dragon before.

“Ratatoskr, the squirrel that runs up and down the world tree-“

“I’m sorry, the WHAT?”

“Oh, a squirrel is-“

“No, no, I know what a squirrel is,” you say. “What is this about it running up and down the world tree?”

“Ratatoskr runs along Yggdrasil to carry messages between the eagle that perches on it and the serpent that lives below its roots,” Loki says.

“What sort of messages does Ratatoskr carry?” you ask.

“Slander and gossip about the two of them to provoke them into fighting each other.”

“Oh, my God.”

“What does that mean?” Loki asks you. “’Oh, my God.’”

“I don’t know where exactly it came from,” you say, “but I think it’s referring to the Christian God. I don’t know if you’re familiar with-“

“Are you referring to Jesus of Nazareth? He called himself Christ, correct?” Loki asks.

“Yeah, that’s him.”

Loki smirks.

“Thor tried to fight him once.”

“HE DID NOT!” you gasp.

“It’s true, but don’t ask Thor about it,” says Loki. “He’s still upset that Jesus refused to fight him.”

"Oh, my God,” You laugh, and Loki grins. He likes your laugh.

“But why should I believe you?” you ask, once you gain your composure. “You’re the God of Lies, aren’t you?”

Loki looks mockingly affronted.

“God of MISCHIEF, ambassador,” he says. “While I am especially silver-tongued, my reputation isn’t based solely on my ability to lie.”

“My apologies.”

“Or am I lying?” he teases.

“I guess we’ll never know,” you say, teasing back.

And this sort of relationship between the two of you feels so natural, so right, you think. But you won’t ask him out, not now. You don’t know each other enough. But maybe, studying together will change that.


End file.
